I walk down the stairs, my heart racing. I see Maxon adjusting his red tie. Is it just me or does he look even more handsome? He sees me and follows me with his eyes until I reach the bottom of the staircase.

I'm so nervous, I start to talk. "That's a nice tie. It brings out the color of your eyes. You don't look as pale as usual. You look good. Have I ever told you you're handsome? You are."

He laughs at my chattering. I see a hint of blush in his cheeks. "Thank you. That's so nice of you, Lady America. You look stunning yourself." He takes me to the garden. We have our established path that leads us to our bench.

But we walk past the bench then turn right at the second row of shrubs. We walk into a maze of greenery and stop at a swing set that has very intricate metal work. It's so beautiful. It's even more beautiful if you consider the potted flowers and plants arranged around it. He leads me to the swing and I take a seat.

"So, what are your plans for today?" I ask.

"Feeling chatty, aren't we? That's good. I was actually thinking of talking. Recently, I found out that there is one other thing I'm terrible at."

I look at him, remembering our night under the stars. "Really? And that is?" I am genuinely curious about this one.

"Getting to know you."

"Oh."

That was unexpected, but sweet.

"Oh my, whatever shall we do about that, Your Majesty?" He smiles at this.

"Don't laugh. I want to play a game?"

"A game?"

"Yes, a game. It's called ten questions. We each have five. We take turns in asking questions. Throwing back the question to the one who asked is not allowed. We must answer honestly. No follow-up questions. We must answer ALL questions."

I look into Maxon's eyes and I see excitement, sincerity and love. I have so many secrets to keep. But I want to be his wife. I want to be with him. And what I'm basically trying to accomplish all this time is gaining his trust.

"Alright, I start." He straightens himself up and waits for my question.

"This can be an easy one. What's your deepest regret?"

He seems to think about this for a second. "I regret not being a good friend to you."

I give him a confused look. Thankfully, he explains.

"These past few weeks, I was a prince to you, critical, a bit insensitive, and detached. I focused too much on my duty as a prince. I forgot that even before we had feelings for each other, we were already friends. Our friendship is something I really cherish. I want it to grow into something more but if it doesn't, then I at least don't want to lose it. And yet, I've been neglecting our friendship lately. I should have rushed to your side the moment you came back and took care of you myself. I should have stayed with you in the hospital wing until you were well enough to leave."

He looks down at his hands. I take one and give it a gentle squeeze. "Hey, it's alright. I understand why you did it. And I appreciate what you just told me." I give him a light kiss on the cheek.

"I believe it's your turn. Make it good."

"Where do you see yourself five years from now?"

Here goes. "I see myself with you. I'm pregnant with our second child. I see you waking me up with your kisses, our son trying his best to be like his wonderful dad. I know it's too much to ask but hey, a girl can dream."

"You didn't mention anything about being queen. Do you hate it that much?"

I think about this, but another thought comes to mind. I poke his side.

"I thought you said no follow-up questions?" He laughs at this.

"If you could be anywhere right now, where would you want to be?"

"Here. With you." He answers without hesitation.

"Come on, Maxon. You're just saying that."

"No, I'm not. I am so happy right now. You may not notice but I'm bursting with joy and I've never been this happy, this in love. Ever."

He touches my cheek and turns my head so I look directly at him. He kisses me on the lips. There's that feeling again, the bliss and contentment when he kisses me that I can never get enough of. And all too soon, he pulls away.

"Tell me a secret. Something no one else knows."

Aspen. Should I tell him? Come clean, America. I tell myself. Tell him. I take a deep breath and stare into his eyes.

"You remember the guy I told you about? My ex-boyfriend?"

He nods grimly.

"He has been drafted and he's assigned here in the palace."

The look on Maxon's face is one of pure surprise. "WHAT?"

"He's the one you appointed to guard my room. We used to talk and there were times when we kissed but I told him we should stop and we did. I didn't even look at him at times. Most times, I even forget about him and everything we shared. Now, after I said goodbye to him, I don't even know where he is. Maxon, I'm so sorry."

I look at Maxon and his expression is hard.

"Please say something." I whisper.

He takes a deep breath. "Do you still love him?" He looks pained.

"No. I don't anymore. I love you, Maxon. I'm really sorry. I knew what we did was bad and I ended it as soon as I could." I am basically pleading for his forgiveness right now.

"You love me?" "Yes, very much so." "Your turn."

"What are you thinking right now?"

"I'm thinking about you and him and how jealous I feel right now. I'm thinking how stupid I was to not think of sneaking into your room first. I'm thinking about how I can't seem to be mad at you. And lastly, I'm thinking I must be crazy right now. I know I should be angry and jealous right now. But you're here. And your presence still makes my knees buckle and my stomach fill with butterflies. I feel the same thing I did when you told me the second time we ever talked that you could never love me. I feel that tug, that challenge of getting you, no matter what it takes."

My heart is melting. I just can't stop myself, I hug him. My tears are threatening to fall. "Maxon, I love you. I'm so sorry." He hesitates at first but hugs me eventually. "Say it again. It comforts me so much." He whispers as he hugs me tighter. "I love you Maxon. Only you."

He breaks away. "My turn. If I ask you to break the law with me- and I know you know which law I'm talking about- would you?"

Wow. This is hard. I feel myself turning red. "Well. Uh-" My heart beats in record speed. That Maxon seriously got me."I wouldn't. The last thing I want to do is cause you trouble." I really mean it. I look at Maxon as he nods, staring somewhere far. "And if you'll choose me, I can assure you we'd have lots of time for those things in the future." I add. I see Maxon's breath quicken and his cheeks redden at what I said.

"Describe baby Maxon." He looks at me, not expecting what I said. "What?" "What were you like as a child, Maxon?"

"Let me think." He scratches his chin and starts. "I was restless then. I had lessons all day and sometimes, I had banquets and travels during weekends that I rarely got to play. I would always ask to eat lunch a little earlier so I can spend a few minutes playing or just running around before I had to eat lunch with my parents. I remember this one time, befriended a Seven. He was a cook's son. He taught me how to build cars from paper and twigs. We'd secretly meet during my afternoon break and race them. He always won."

He laughs, probably remembering his childhood. I imagine a baby Maxon fumbling over twigs with his little fingers. The thought is so cute, I giggle.

"Damn, that was a good one America. I wish I thought of it first. My turn. What do you think of me?"

"You are one of the nicest and kindest people I have ever met. You're someone I can be with for hours and we can talk through it and not be bored for a single second. You are my most unexpected place of solace. You held me in your arms when I thought I was breaking. You made me feel love when I thought I couldn't. You are happiness Maxon. You're my happiness."

I look at him and he looks at me. We stare into each other's eyes for a while. And before I know it, I'm kissing him and he's kissing me.

"Hey, two more questions." I say. He steals one more peck before sitting back, his hands still surrounding my waist pulling me closer.

"Who was the first girl you had a crush on in the Selection?"

He laughs. "Lady America, you disappoint me with your question. That's too easy. Of course it's you. You're different from the others. Your offer of friendship and our first conversation, they were one of the most unexpected and exciting moments of my life. You made my boring, planned out life interesting within the first week of our meeting, America. How can I not long for more of you?" He smiles at me.

"And not to mention you were wearing the shortest night gown that first day too." He laughs. "Hey!" I punch him lightly in the arm, pretending to be mad. But eventually I laugh too.

"Can I save my last question for later, Lady America? I really feel like kissing you right now." I giggle and nod. He grabs my faces and kisses me hard. Gone are the gentle, barely-there kisses. He drowned me in his passionate kisses that demanded more. He pulls me closer so I sit on his lap. He cradles me and kisses me more.

I couldn't be happier.